Fascinating Knowledge of Questionable Value

Category Archives: Biography

In 2011, Chris Jeon was a 21-year old UCLA student from an affluent Orange County neighborhood. A brilliant student and dedicated mathematics major, Chris had his eyes set on a lucrative summer internship at the largest asset management firm in the world – a position that would catapult him into the career in finance that he had always dreamed of. But by the end of the summer, Chris would find himself not sitting in a cubicle, but fighting alongside Libyan rebels in their revolution against Muammar Gaddafi.

This is the story of one of the most epic and unlikely summer breaks ever.

In the long history of human construction, almost every type of material imaginable has been used to build things. After all, you only need to find something that will hold its shape and support weight to make a building with it. The Romans would often embed empty vases into concrete to both reduce the weight of taller portions of structures as well as to take up space and use less concrete. But imagine building an entire house, village, or city out of bottles: crazy, right? To Alfred Heineken, this idea had the potential to change the world. Enter the Heinekin WOBO.

Missile launchers near the borders. American warships chugging towards the Korean Peninsula. A cartoonish North Korean guy threatening to wipe everyone else off the map. Once again, it seems like we are closer than ever to a second Korean War. Actually, it would technically be the same war since a peace treaty was never signed to end the first one, but I digress. To someone who is only moderately familiar with the situation, things look bad: North Korea, or Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as it is formally known, almost certainly has nuclear technology as well as rockets to deliver it with; they have the largest army by number of personnel in the world; and they have a young leader with something to prove. But are things really as bad as they think? Let’s face it; diplomatically, things with the DPRK are always screwed up to one degree or another. So let me offer a few considerations from a military perspective that will hopefully let you breathe a sigh of relief.

We love our mysticism and intrigue. Everyone loves to point to curses to explain behavior and why bad things happen to beloved icons. Case in point: The Sports Illustrated and Madden Cover curses are two of the most discussed and most believed-in curses. Whenever someone goes down with an injury, it is that old Madden/SI curse rearing its ugly head again.

So today I have a treat for you – the melding of two of our most loved institutions in this country: The Little Rascals Curse.

Happy Presidents’ Day America! On every third monday in February, we take time (sometimes a full day if you’re lucky) to relax and appreciate the great – and not so great – men who have led our country through the good times and the bad. This day was originally a federal holiday in honor of George Washington’s birthday, until President Nixon declared that it should recognize all US Presidents. So in honor of this day, and because we here at *AT* love all things presidential, here are some fun facts about some statistical records among the leaders of the free world.

In the summer of 1999, western countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization were in the final stages of negotiating a peaceful end to the Kosovo War. For much of the 90’s, conflicts had erupted between ethnic Serbs and Albanians over the Kosovo region of Southeast Europe, an area occupied by both ethnic groups. NATO eventually intervened in 1998 by initiating an air-bombing campaign that was covered extensively in the media. By June of 1999, a ceasefire had been called and a peace agreement was reached, which included a NATO-led occupation of Kosovo in a peacekeeping role. But it was in the crucial moment between the ceasefire and the peace that probably one of the biggest international incidents ever was avoided.

This article originally appeared as an *AT* contribution on All That is Interesting. If you like what we write about here, take some time and check out their site!

On September 2nd, 1945, less than one month after the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, representatives from the Empire of Japan signed the unconditional surrender of their country to the Allies. This event, which officially marked the end of World War II, took place on the deck of the USS Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay. Unfortunately for many, the war would go on for decades.